[K-FOOD/REVIEW] Dine in SYNC at the First Korean Fusion Bistro in Singapore

October 19, 2014

So we heard that YG’s newest boy band WINNER was recently served by SYNC, Singapore’s first Korean Fusion Bistro when they were here for the Samsung Meet & Greet event last month, and as WINNER fans, we just couldn’t resist to pop by for a look and taste.

SYNC Korean Fusion Bistro is situated in the heart of Jurong East, located at a quiet corner of Westgate at #03-01/01A, just right above the largest Samsung Experience Store in Singapore. Like us, you may not have noticed the bistro even though you’ve been to Westgate before, but I assure you that this restaurant is pretty worth a visit and here’s why we think so:

Stylish and Cosy Ambience
Featuring an indoor dining area as well as alfresco dining, SYNC is a pretty nice restaurant to hang out or simply chill after a long day at work or school.

When we say stylish, we meant it. For many of you who didn’t know, SYNC is powered by Samsung and is directly connected to the Samsung Experience Store by a flight of stairs within the bistro. So you can shop at the retail store on the ground level, and when your stomach is calling, simply head upstairs for some food and drinks!

Not to mention, SYNC also has a cosy corner for the tech-savvies, where you can get your hands on Samsung’s latest electronic gadgets and discover more about them through the brochures that are available for grabs there.

There is a kids’ zone for the young ones to experience the gadgets with free apps download too! Best of all, there is free Wi-Fi in the restaurant, which is a bonus for people like us who use it to connect to our laptops or phones.

Wide Selection of Food & Beverages
SYNC features an extensive menu with a wide selection of Korean-western fusion dishes including the Munchies ($6.90), Starters ($7.90), Mains (from $11.90), Desserts (from $7.90) and Kids menu ($11.90). Beverages range from Cocktails, Beer, Soju, Liquor, Icy Drinks, Caffeinated beverages and the in-house special Alco-pop. Alco-pop is a kind of flavoured popsicle served with vodka/soju, a pretty interesting combination I’d say.

They have a bar inside the restaurant as well, which opens up to 12AM on Fridays & Saturdays and 11PM on the other days. Now, this is really giving it an edge over the others, considering that most restaurants/cafes in shopping malls close pretty early.

Back to food – For the munchies, we had the Yangnyeom Tongdak 양념통닭 (aka crispy sweet & spicy chicken winglets – $6.90) which comes in three pieces per serving. As with the description, the chicken winglets are best eaten when served hot. It’s a dish that is welcomed by both adults and kids, not too spicy and just nice for our taste buds.

We also had the Gamja Tuikim 감자 튀김 (aka french fries topped with Kimchi nacho cheese – $6.90) which tasted surprisingly good! You may think that kimchi mixed with cheese is a weird combination (sour/spicy + savoury = ??), but once you tasted it, you’ll be bound to ask for a second serving. This is definitely one dish we would recommend you to try at SYNC.

Korean rice cake is a must to try when you visit Korea. For those of you who’re a fan of spicy food, you may like to try the Topokki 떡볶이 (Korean rice cakes – $7.90) that is served with fish cake, bacon bits and a soft boiled egg. I personally think that the soft boiled egg is the main highlight from this dish, although the rice cakes are equally yummy as well. 😉

Moving on to the mains, we had the Budae jjigae 부대찌개 (aka everyone’s favourite army stew – $14.90) and Pork Belly Rice 돼지고기덮밥 ($12.90). Almost every table ordered the army stew so we thought we should give it a try too. A pot of army stew is good for one to two persons, as it comes with rice cakes, ramyun, dumplings, sausages & pork belly slices. I don’t know about you, but the taste definitely reminded me of the comfort food we all enjoyed.

The Pork Belly Rice on the other hand, is a pretty unique dish which you have to mix the ingredients just like Bibimbap. The sautéed spicy pork belly comes with pickles, onions, seasonal vegetables and steamed short grain rice. The overall taste is a little too sweet for me, so I’d give a 3 out of 5 stars for this dish.

I guess the main highlights were the desserts. Hotteok 호떡 is a very popular snack/street food in Korea, best eaten during the winter season when it’s piping hot. Usually, there are different types of fillings within the chewy Korean pancake.

The one that is served at SYNC is stuffed with cinnamon and nuts, topping it off with black sesame chantilly, chunky red bean, soy bean powder and vanilla ice cream ($9.90). Just look at how beautifully it’s displayed and served. If you’ve not eaten the Hotteok before, you definitely have to give it a try!

Our favourite dessert of the day went to the Lava Cake, Matcha Addiction. For the price of $7.90, you get a freshly baked warm molten lava cake and a scoop of ice cream at your choice of flavour. The two other available flavours are white chocolate taro and white chocolate red bean.

If you are ordering this dessert, you’ll have to expect a 15-20 minutes wait as the lava cake will be coming out fresh from the oven – which also means that the chef will only prepare it upon ordering. On some days, this dessert may not even be available due to sold-outs and popular demands. Here’s a tip: To reduce the waiting time, order your choice of lava cake 15 minutes in advance before you finish your meal. 😉

Overall, we love the ambience at SYNC and will definitely be back again. Being the first technologically enhanced bistro in Singapore, SYNC blends in technology, lifestyle and food together, creating a vibrant meeting place for 3 generations. SYNC is also available for private party bookings, making it an ideal place for private gatherings.

And if you think that is the end, I think we forgot to mention that all prices will NOT be subjected to any service charge. You heard that right, no service charge!

These are among the food (Beef Bulgogi Sliders & Pan-fried Gyoza) that were served to WINNER during their recent Meet & Greet event at Westgate. (Photo: SYNC Korean Fusion Bistro)

SYNC Korean Fusion Bistro is located at Westgate, 3 Gateway Drive #03-01/01A, Singapore 608532.

Operating hours: Monday to Thursday & Sunday: 11:00 – 23:00 hrs | Friday & Saturday: 11:00 – 00:00 hrs

We would like to thank SYNC Korean Fusion Bistro for the media invitation and are pleased to inform you readers that a new outlet SYNC Korean Tapas Bar will be opening soon at Serangoon Gardens this October. Stay tuned for our next K-Food review!

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